ABC news' Dan Kloeffler inspired by Zachary Quinto to come out as a gay man on air

Dan Kloeffer of ABC's "World News Now" was relaying the news of "Heroes" and "Star Trek" actor
Zachary Quintocoming out as a gay man on Monday when he decided to reveal that he, too, is gay, making a casual joke about potentially dating Quinto.

He explained in his blog that he was inspired by Quinto's decision to come out and decided to reveal his own sexual orientation on the air. "For the same reason that Zach decided to come out, I too, no longer wanted to hide this part of my life," he wrote. "There have been too many tragic endings and too many cases of bullying because of intolerance. As a kid I wanted someone to look up to, someone that could relate to the feelings I was having. Most of all, I wanted to know that it would get better."

He initially kept his sexuality quiet to keep the focus on his profession. "As a journalist, I don't want to be the story, but as a gay man I don't want to stand silent if I can offer some inspiration or encouragement to kids that might be struggling with who they are," he says.